Chirality arises universally across many different fields. Recent advancements in artificial nanomaterials have demonstrated chiroptical responses that far exceed those found in natural materials. Chiroptical phenomena are complicated processes that involve transitions between states with opposite parities, and solid interpretations of these observations are yet to be clearly provided. In this review, we present a comprehensive overview of the theoretical aspects of chirality in light, nanostructures, and nanosystems and their chiroptical interactions. Descriptions of observed chiroptical phenomena based on these fundamentals are intensively discussed. We start with the strong intrinsic and extrinsic chirality in plasmonic nanoparticle systems, followed by enantioselective sensing and optical manipulation, and then conclude with orbital angular momentum-dependent responses. This review will be helpful for understanding the mechanisms behind chiroptical phenomena based on underlying chiral properties and useful for interpreting chiroptical systems for further studies.

手性普遍存在于许多不同领域。人造纳米材料的最新进展已经证明其手性光学响应远远超过天然材料中的手性光学响应。手性光学现象是复杂的过程，涉及具有相反宇称的状态之间的转变，并且尚未明确提供对这些观察结果的可靠解释。在这篇综述中，我们全面概述了光、纳米结构和纳米系统中手性的理论方面及其手性光学相互作用。基于这些基本原理对观察到的手性光学现象的描述进行了深入讨论。我们从等离子体纳米粒子系统中强大的内在和外在手性开始，然后是对映选择性传感和光学操纵，最后以轨道角动量依赖性响应结束。本综述将有助于理解基于潜在手性特性的手性光学现象背后的机制，并有助于解释手性光学系统以供进一步研究。